Machine for sealing filled bags



Dec. 13, 1949 E. c. 51'. JACQUES ETAL 2,491,226

MACHINE FOR SEALING FILLED BAGS Filed July 1, 1949 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 Dec. 13, 1949 s. c. s-r. JACQUES ETAL 2,491,226

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Dec. 13, 1949 E. c. ST. JACQUES ETAL. 2,491,226

MACHINE FOR SEALING FILLED BAGS Filed July 1. 1949 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 Iaweazdionm E'mz'le aSiiJacgms, Robea tHSkJacgws, y MMW- fliioafi'aqys Dec. 13, 1949 E. C. ST. JACQUES ET AL MACHINE FOR SEALING FILLED BAGS s Sheets-Sheet 5 FilQd July 1, 194,9

Emzze, a. saJauauelq, Robert H JZJ ewgaes, by WMJZMM 113308 224250;

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mourns FOR ammo. mum mos Emile 0. St. Jacques and Robertll. St. Jacques,

Wareham,

Application July 1, 1949, Serial No. 102.456

This invention relates to a machine for sealing filled bags, and particularly to a machine for sealing by heat and pressure filled bags made of cellopnane or some other material that can be sealed in this manner.

One object of the invention is to provide a ma finally stopping all operations of the machine so that all the attendant has to do is to keep the conveyor supplied with filled bags and initiate each cycle of operations by some simple act like pressing a button. t

A further object of the invention is to provide a machine of this type in which the feeding movement of the conveyor is initiated by the attendant, while the operation of the sealing means is initiated by the movement of the conveyor and is terminated by the sealing means itself.

A further object of the invention is to provide a machine of this type in which the conveyor and the sealing means are both operated from the same source of power, and means controlled by the movement of the conveyor functions to initiate the operation of the sealing means and also to bring the conveyor to rest, the termination of the operation of the sealing means being controlled by a moving part thereof.

While the invention is not concerned with the character of the material with which the bags are filled, yet the machine herein illustrated has been especially designed for heat-sealing cellophane bags that are filled with cranberries. The machine, however, is adapted for heat-sealing cello phane bags regardless of the character of the materal with which the bags are filled.

In the drawings wherein we have illustrated a selected embodiment of the invention,

Fig. 1 is a front view of a machine embodying our invention.

Fig. 2 is a plan view thereof.

Fig. 3 is a sectional view on the line 3-3, Figs. 1 and 6, illustrating the heat-sealing means and the driving means therefor.

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary section on the line 4-4, Fig. 1.

Fig. 5 is an end view of the machine.

Fig. 6 is an enlarged vertical section through the heat sealing means on the line 6-6, Fig. 1.

3 Claims. (Cl. 154-42) 2 Fig. 7 is a view illustrating the manner in which the sealer and stopping the mechanism at the end of each cycle of operations.

Fig. 8 is a wiring diagram.

Our improved machine comprises an endless conveyor 3 by which filled bags such as indicated at 4 are fed to a sealing station where they are :ealed and then delivered from said sealing staion.

The conveyor 3 is mounted on a suitable frame 5 and it comprises a belt or band element 6 which has secured to and projecting from one face thereof a plurality of pairs of wings I, 8, each pair of wings forming between them a pocket 9 to receive one of the filled bags 4. At one end the conveyor passes around a driving roll H! by which it is driven, and at the other end it passes around the direction roll II. The conveyor is arranged with the endless band element 6 having a generally upright position so that the pockets 9 are open at the top and at the front side. The frame is provided with a platform l2 directly beneath the front run or front side of the conveyor and which forms the bottoms of the pockets. The rolls l0 and II are inclined backwardly from a vertical position as shown best in Figs. 5 and 4 with the result that the endless band 6, which forms the back of the pockets 9, has the same inclination and hence when a filled bag is placed'in a pocket, it will not only rest on the platform I2, but will also rest against the band 6, and therefore there is no tendency for the filled bag to tip forwardly out of the open front side of its pocket.

The conveyor is driven from a suitable motor l3 which is connected to and operates a suitable reduction gear enclosed in a suitable gear box 14 and which is provided with a power take-off [5 from which is driven a shaft l6 connected by bevel gears I1 with the shaft "3 of the drive roller Ill, said shafts l6 and I8 being mounted in suitable bearings l9 carried by the frame.

The power take-off I5 is connected to the shaft I6 through the medium of a clutch comprising a driving clutch element 20 fast on the power takeoperating power take-oil 15, while movement of gized, the lever 22 willbe moved toward the left,

Fig. 1, and the clutch will be thrown into engagement, while when the clutch-opening solenoid 21 is energized, the clutch will be disengaged. Means hereinafter described are provided by which the operator or attendant can cause the clutch-closing solenoid to be energized thereby starting the conveyor in operation and whereby the clutch-opening solenoid 21 will be energized to disengage the clutch when the conveyor has moved forward one step and has brought a filled bag to the sealing station.

The means for sealing each bag comprises a pair of electrically heated sealing irons 30 which are located above the conveyor and are normally in their spaced-apart relation shown in Fig. 3, thereby forming between them a passageway 3| through which the top portion of each bag passes as it is carried forward by the conveyor. Each sealing iron 30 is mounted on and carried by a carriage 32 which is mounted for movement in ways 33 formed in a supplemental frame portion 34. These carriages 32 are movable toward and from each other thereby similarly moving the sealing irons toward and from each other, the movement of the carriages and the sealingirons being transverse to the movement of the filled bags.

When any filled bag has been brought to rest at the sealing station, which is constituted by the space 3i between the sealing irons 30, the carriages 32 are moved toward each other to bring the two sealing irons against the top of the bag thereby pressing the bag top between the heated sealing irons, such operationresulting in sealing the bag because of the character of the'material of which the bag is made.

The sealing irons 3e are preferably yieldingly carried by the carriages 32, each sealing iron being backed by springs 35, so that as the carriages 32 move toward each other, the sealing irons 39 will be brought into engagement with the bag and will subject the latter to pressure just before the carriages complete their inward movement, the springs 35 yielding during such final movement with the result that the heat-sealing pressure of the sealing ironson the bag will be maintained for suflicient time to effect the proper sealing operation.

The carriages 32 are given their movement toward and from each other by means of cams 36 which operate in openings 31 with which the carriages are provided. Each cam 36 is fast on a cam shaft 38 which is journaled in the supplemental 4 38. The .clutch member 42 is a driving clutch member fast on the power take-off 4| while the clutch member 43 is a driven clutch member and is mounted on the shaft 44 for rotation therewith but is splined thereto so that it can move axially of the shaft for the purpose of engaging it with or disengaging it from the driving clutch member 42.

The clutch member 43 is controlled by a clutch lever 46 similar to the clutch lever 22, said lever 46 being pivoted at 41 to the frame and having lugs or pins 48 which operate in a circumferential groove 4'9 with which the clutch member 43 is provided.

The clutch-actuating lever 46 is also controlled by two solenoids, a clutch-closing solenoid 50 and a. clutch-opening solenoid 6 I said clutch-controlling lever 46 having at its upper end two members 52 which function as the cores for the solenoids 60 and 5 I.

When the solenoid 66 is energized, the clutch- -controlling lever 46 will be moved to the right,

Fig. 1, thereby starting the sealing mechanism in operation, and when the solenoid 5| is energized, the clutch will be disengaged.

The means for controlling the operation of these solenoids will be presently described.

The sealing irons 30 and their carriages 32 are mounted in the supplemental frame portion 34 for vertical adjustment so that the said sealing irons can be raisedor lowered as needed according to the size of the bags which are being filled and sealed. For this purpose the ways 33 in which the carriages operate are mounted on plates 53 which are vertically adjustable in the supplemental frame portion M by means of adjusting screws 5d. These screws 5d are screw threaded through not members 55 carried by an upper plate 56 of the supplemental frame 34 and the lower ends of the adjusting screws are swiveled in the plates 53. Hence by turning the adjusting screws 5&3, the plates 53 with the carriages 32 and sealing irons thereon may be raised and lowered asdesired.

The cams 35 are splined to the shaft 38 so that said cams may move axially of the shafts when the sealing irons are raised or lowered.

In the operation of the machine, and assuming that all the pockets 9 between the pocket 9a and the sealing device are loaded with filled bags, the attendant, after placing a filled bag in the empty pocket 811, Fig. l, actuates a starting switch 6!, which may be a foot switch or a hand switch and which results in closing a circuit through and energizing the clutch-closing solenoid 26 thereby closirig the conveyor clutch 20, 2i and establishing an operative driving connection between the motor is and the conveyor 3. The conveyor is thus started in motion and it moves forward one step to carry a filled bag into sealing position between the sealing irons 30.

Just before the bag to be sealed arrives at the sealing station, the moving conveyor operates another switch 80 which closes a circuit through the clutch-closing solenoid 56 thereby energizing the latter and throwing the sealer clutch e2, 43 into engagement and starting the sealer. Immediately after the sealer has been started, the moving conveyor actuates a third switch 68 which opens the circuit of the clutch-closing solenoid 10 2'6 and at the same time results in closing a circuit disengaging the conveyor clutch 29, 28.

through the coils of the clutch-opening solenoid 2'5 thereby energizing the latter and opening or The conveyor then comes to rest with a filled. bag in position to be sealed by the heated sealing irons.

It has been stated above that the sealer'hal been started in operation Just prior to the stopping of the conveyor, and while the conveyor is at rest the sealer continues in operation and presses the open mouth of the bag between the two heated sealing irons thereby sealing the bag, the cams 3i returning the sealing irons to their retracted position after the bag has been sealed.

As the sealing irons 30 and their carriages 82 reach their retracted position, another switch I! is actuated to establisha current through the clutch-opening solenoid 5| so that the latter be-- comes energized and operates to open the sealer clutch 42, 43 thus bringing the sealer to rest. This completes one cycle of operations.

The operator then places another filled bag in an empty pocket 9 which has been brought into loading position by the movement of the conveyor and again actuates the starting switch 6| when the above cycle of Operations will be repeated.

In Fig. 8 there is shown a wiring diagram by which the clutch-closing solenoids and clutchopening solenoids are controlled. In this diagram LI and L2 represent the line wires of a supply circuit. The line wire Ll leads to the contacts B4 of the foot switch GI and thence through the normally closed switch 58 and thence to the coils of the clutch-closing solenoid 26, the latter being connected by the wire connection 61 to the return line wire L2. So long as the foot switch 6| is open, which is its normal condition, the circuit through the solenoid 26 will be open, but when the operator depresses the foot switch 61, the circuit through the solenoid 26 is closed and the latter becomes operative to actuate the clutch-lever 22 and thus throw the conveyor clutch 20, 2| into operation. In order to maintain the circuit closed through the clutch-closing solenoid 26 after the operator has released the foot switch 6 I there is provided a relay having a coil 62 which is connected across the line wires LI and L2 in parallel with the coils of the clutchclosing solenoid 26, the relay coil 62 being connected to the line wire Ll by the circuit connection 99 and to the line wire L2 by the circuit connection 98. This relay includes an armature member 14 which is pivotally mounted at 69 and is normally held in its raised position by a spring II but which, when the relay coil 62 is energized, is swung downwardly to bridge a pair of contacts 10 in a circuit connection 13 so that when the relay coil 62 is energized, the circuit through the clutch-closing solenoid 26 will be maintained through the circuit connection I3 and the contacts 10 which are closed by the armature 14 even though the foot switch is released and is thus automatically opened.

When the conveyor has moved one step forward thereby to bring the mouth of a filled ba into sealing position between the sealing irons 3|, the switch 68 is opened by the moving conveyor thereby opening the circuit through the relay coil 62 and through the clutch-closing solenoid 26 and de-energizing both said coil and the solenoid. To accomplish this each wing 1 of the conveyor has a button 18 and when each forward step of the conveyor has been nearly completed, a button 18 on one of the wings will engage an arm or shoe 1! and force the latter backwardly thereby opening the switch 68 with the result that the solenoid 26 and also the relay coil 2 will be de-energized. When the relay coil is de-energized, the spring H swings the armature H upwardlyinto engagement with two contacts 15 located in a branch circuit 16 which leads from the line wire Ll to the clutch-opening-solenoid 21, the latter be connected to the return line wire by the wire connection 11. Hence as soon as the relay is deenergized, the clutch-opening solenoid 21 becomes energized with the result that the conveyor clutch is disengaged and the conveyor comes to rest. Before the conveyor actually stops its movement. however, the button ll which actuated the switch 8 has moved past said switch so as to allow said switch to be automatically closed.

I Just before the said conveyor clutch is disengaged. a button 18 on one of the wings I closes the switch in the circuit II which is connected across the line wires LI, L2 and which includes the coll'of the switch-closing solenoid. The closing of the switch 80 energizes the clutchclosing solenoid 50, which as stated above, throws the sealer clutch 43, 42 into engagement and thus starts the sealer in operation, this occurring Just before the conveyor has come to rest.

The teeth of the sealer clutch members H, 4.3 are so formed that after said members have been engaged, they will be held in engagement by the transmission or the power from the driving clutch member 42 to the driven clutch member 43 even though the switch 80 is automatically opened after the button 18 by which it was closed has moved beyond the switch.

* The starting of the sealer causes the cams 38 to rotate thereby first to advance the sealing irons and close them against the open mouth 01 the bag 4 thereby heat-sealing the latter, and then to retract saidsealing irons into their retracted position shown in Fig. 3. Just as the cams arrive at the position shown in Fig. 3, a lug or wiper on one of the cams actuates and closes the normally open switch I3 in a circuit 84 which includes the coils of the clutch-opening solenoid SI and which extends across from the circuit connection 16 to the line wire L2. The closing of the switch I! will thereby energize the clutch-opening solenoid 5i and will disengage the clutch which operates the sealer whereupon the sealer will come to rest, thereby completing one cycle of operations. 3

' When during the cycle of operations the conveyor has been brought to rest and while the sealing operation is being performed, the operation will place another filled bag in the pocket which has been brought iiito the position indicated at 90, Fig. l, by the :previous forward step of the conveyor, and as soon as the sealing operation has been completed and the sealer has been brought to rest, the operator will then actuate the foot switch 6| and t us start another cycle of operations thereby seal ng another bag. This proceeding is repeated as .each cycle of operations is completed and it will be observed that the operator has only tosee that a filled bag is placed into each empty pocket as it comes into the position 9a and then at the appropriate time actuate the foot switch il to set the machine going to carry out one cycle of operations.

As stated above this invention is applicable for sealing filled bags regardless of the character of the material with which the bags are filled. For many purposes however it is desirable that each bag should contain a predetermined quantity of material, and if this is a requirement our sealing mechanism herein illustrated may be used in conjunction with a weighing and filling device adapted to deliver to a bag a predetermined weight of material.

While any suitable filling and weighing mechanism may be employed in connection with the sealing mechanism herein shown. yet we have.

illustrated herein more or less diagrammatically a weighing and filling mechanism such as shown in our co-pending application Serial No. 102,455,

bags are to be filled is delivered on to an end less conveyor 84, the latter in turn delivering the material to a weighing hopper 92 which is normally closedbut which opens automatically to discharge its contents when a predetermined weight of material has been delivered thereto, the material delivered from the hopper 92 being discharged into a chute 90 having a delivery spout i adapted to be entered into the mouth-of a bag 4 as shown by dotted lines Fig. l.

with such a weighing and filling mechanism, the attendant will place the mouth of an empty bag over the delivery spout SI and when the ba has received its predetermined weight of material, the operator will place it in the empty pocket which has been brought into the position 9a in Fig. 1.

We claim:

1. An apparatus for sealing filled bags comprising a conveyor for delivering filled bags singly to a sealing station, a motor, driving connections between the motor and the conveyor including a conveyor-operating clutch, a bag sealer at said sealing station for sealing each bag as it is delivered thereto, driving connections including a sealer-operating clutch between said motor and said sealer, manually controlled means for rendering operative the conveyor-operating clutch to start the conveyor in motion, conveyor-controlled means to disengage the conveyor-operating clutch when the conveyor has moved forward one step and 'a filled bag has arrived at the sealing station, whereby the conveyor is brought to rest, other conveyor-controlled meansto render the sealer-operating clutch operative just prior to the stopping of the conveyor and means controlled by the sealer to disengage the sealer-operating clutch when the bag at the sealing station has been sealed.

2. An apparatus for sealing filled bags comprising a conveyor for delivering filled bags singly to a sealing station, a motor, driving connections between the motor and the conveyor including a conveyor-operating clutch, a bag sealer at said sealing station for sealing each bag as it is delivered thereto, driving connections including a sealer-operating clutch between said motor and' said sealer, a clutch-closing solenoid for rendering the conveyor-operating clutch operative, manually controlled means for energizing said solenoid and thereby starting the conveyor in operation, a clutch-opening solenoid for disengaging said clutch, conveyor-controlled means to energize the clutch-opening solenoid as the conveyor completes its forward step and delivers a filled bag to -the sealing station, whereby the conveyor is brought to rest, and other conveyor-controlled means to render the sealer operative Just prior to the stopping of the conveyor, and means controlled by the sealer to disengage the sealer-opcrating clutch when the sealing operation has been completed.

3. An apparatus for sealing filled bags comprising a conveyor for delivering filled bags singly to a sealing Station, a motor, driving connections between the motor and the conveyor including a conveyor-operating clutch, a bag sealer at said sealing station for sealing each bag as it is-delivered thereto, driving connections including a,

solenoid and thereby starting the conveyor in.

operation, a clutch-opening solenoid for disengaging said clutch, conveyor-controlled means to energize the clutch-opening solenoid as the conveyor completes its forward step and delivers a filled bag to the sealing station, whereby the conveyor is brought to rest, a second clutch-closing solenoid for rendering the sealer-operating clutch operative, other conveyor-controlled means to energize the second clutch-closing solenoid just prior to the stopping of the conveyor whereby the sealer is set in operation, a second clutch-opening solenoid for disengaging thesealer clutch,- and means controlled by the sealer to energize said second clutch-opening solenoid when the sealing operation on a bag has been completed.

EMILE C. ST. JACQUES. ROBERT H. ST. JACQUES.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent: I

UNITED STATES PA'I'EN'IB Perry Feb. 5, 1946 

